Corporate Photography Gains New Creativity on the Internet

		PR NEWSWIRE -- NEW PRNEWSFOTOS WEB SITE Corporate photography has long been the boring stepsister to its media counterpart, but the Internet has made a hot commodity out of creative business photos, according to veteran photojournalist Hal Buell. PR Newswire, the world's leading distributor of news releases and photos, has created a new web site with Buell as part of its campaign to increase the industry's successful use of photos. (PRNewsFoto)[DM] NEW YORK, NY USA

NEW YORK, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Corporate photography has long been the boring stepsister to its media counterpart, but the Internet has made a hot commodity out of creative business photos, according to veteran photojournalist Hal Buell. (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991028/HSTH001 ) The media has always sought excellent photos from companies for publications and now web sites, and the boom in Internet news sites has created an increasing need for good corporate photos. However, most public relations professionals have not learned how best to tell their story through photos, said Buell, who was The Associated Press' executive picture editor for 25 years. PR Newswire, the world's leading distributor of news releases and photos, has created a new web site with Buell as part of its campaign to increase the industry's successful use of photos. The site, http://www.PRNewsFotos.com , features tutorials on topics such as how to scan photos, an idea gallery of photos and access to a full array of picture solutions. Forthcoming in-depth tutorials will address improving the quality of photos, captions and creative photography. "Compelling corporate photos are essential to any organization's image-building effort. The media has an unquenchable thirst for artwork, but editors do not want to see the typical hand shake or ribbon-cutting photo," Buell said. "This web site can help companies improve photo distribution, resulting in greater publicity. Distribution is important too -- while a good picture can get a story into print, a better photo can pull the story onto the front page." A picture editor all of his life, he says many companies seem to have a love-hate relationship with photos. "Those in charge of producing public relations photography seem to pay too little attention to picture quality, or, in some cases, seem downright hostile toward photography and photographers. Many appear to believe that public relations can be successful without this key component -- a mistaken impression in the visual age of the 21st century," he said. Many factors weigh into creating quality photography. Buell, who provides insight during workshops around the country, created the web tutorials as a complement to his course. PR Newswire distributes thousands of pictures annually via satellite and digital archiving to image-hungry print media, television, and web sites. Through NewsCom, AP Photo Express and the AP Photo Archive, thousands of photo editors retrieve pictures from PR Newswire members. The company is now able to provide public relations professionals with assistance in choosing the right photographer. The web site offers insight on the full range of these services. Some industries effectively use photography, namely the automotive and entertainment industries, according to Buell. Auto photos, for example, can make the car buyer salivate, while entertainment companies win millions of dollars worth of advertising space with shots of performers, show stills and other types of photos, he said. "Public relations professionals are catching on to the use of photos, but there is a long way to go. Just distributing photos is not good enough. The pictures must appeal to editors, especially business editors who never have enough picture copy for their stories," Buell said. PR Newswire is the world leader in the electronic delivery of breaking news releases and information directly from companies and institutions through its cutting-edge wire, fax, satellite and Internet network. Forty-five years after founding the industry, it has 35 bureaus worldwide, an exclusive partnership with Canada NewsWire and a vast international affiliate system. PR Newswire provides a broad complement of services enabling public relations and investor relations professionals to immediately access the media, financial community and consumers. For more information, please contact: Hal Buell, PR Newswire, Hal_Buell@prnewswire.com; or Renu K. Aldrich, PR Newswire, Public Relations Manager, Renu_Aldrich@prnewswire.com .